This fundamental stance of covert blessing, or at best equivocal detachment, especially at the local level, has never really changed. Prominent mafiosi not only are allowed to sponsor processions in honor of a variety of saints but also are regularly married in and buried by the church. For some young men it is normal to hesitate between a career in the clergy and one in the mafia, since in small villages the two institutions appear to be plausible associative options.

Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Busi…, loc. 130